I like those clips a lot. Virgil can definetly groove and I didn't actually know he had that in him. That's really cool. Solid, solid studio playing! I love it.
Let me give an opinion. I don't have very much recording experience. There are guys who work the studios in town here every day. I work maybe once a month, and nothing big. I know though, it can be way, way, way more difficult to play in the studio and come up with a part that may be completely creative and groundbreaking. It's much, much easier and more condusive to working in studios further if you play conservatively. Unless you have a great amount of experience (let's not lie, guys like Gadd and Vinnie et al have played way more sessions) it's hard to play and let an individual voice creep through to the surface. So, it's possible to me that Virgil could have this impact if he did it way more than he does now. No matter what Gadd plays on, he sounds like Gadd. Maybe Virgil doesn't have his studio identity yet.